I just wanted to share this- these are unbelievable – take a look….WOW what a gorgeous couple and wedding 
Ruth, you have outdone yourself!!!
One of the best parts of this wedding, and it was all fabulous, but the fact that the bride is the sister of one of my previous brides!!!! We planned/coordinated Ashley’s wedding over 2 years ago in Charleston, so it was such a wonderful treat to see and work with this loving family again.
Carla and Justin had their wedding at the gorgeous Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens in Belmont, North Carolina. These gardens are phenomenal. They decided to have their ceremony outside in the White Garden, with cocktail hour in the Crepe Myrtle Garden then the reception in the Great Hall.
The day threatened rain and drizzled on and off all day- but the couple were very serious about holding the ceremony outside. We did get things started outside however we had to move inside due to rain. Everything went beautifully!!! Sadly we did not get to enjoy cocktail hour in the Crepe Myrtle Garden….
The reception was in the Great Hall and it was gorgeous- the soft pink and rich chocolate brown linens were lovely topped with beautiful arrangements varying in height created by Party Blooms. We place tones of candle light to make it even softer.
The catering was by Best Impressions Catering -and I can sum it up one word…”WOW” – absolutely amazing.
As a fun and enjoyable treat, we set up a monster candy bar- see below
The White Garden set- just before the processional.
The lovely card box created by the groom!
One view of the Great Hall
Another angle…
One other angle before we raised the screens
You can see their sweet heart table covered in pink pintuck almost center- and the cute groom’s cake with Clemson topper
Lovely cake!!!!
And here is the fabulous candy bar- we created the custom lables for each variety.
…and gave it a little variety with different tables.
And a close up.
This past weekend, we were presented with transforming a National Guard Armory into a romantic reception for 260 lovely guests. The bride got married in her home town of Hampton, SC and with such a large guest list, the options were limited for location in this quaint town. The armory had the space but did not exactly fit her ‘vision’ for her reception So she brought us in to totally transform this venue!
This project was a custom creation from start to finish….the couples colors were ivory and a deep red, so she wanted a billowy ivory fabric – but with such high ceilings, the standard height draping would not work – so B.I.O. created custom panels to hang in the armory. We soften the ceiling with lights and draped points. It was a grand undertaking- the project took 3.5 days to complete with all the different aspects involved.
We also transformed the stage for the couples sweetheart table as well. We topped it all off with lovely up lighting along the walls.
**The floral designs and accents were created by family friend of the bride.
The photos below give you before and after photos- as you can see, there was lots of stuff within the space, however it all turned out just lovely.
One angle of the room before clean up.
Before- from the entry doors…
After: From the entry
After: One angle.
Before: Looking at the stage.
After: Closer shot of the stage.
After: Facing the stage and sweetheart table.
Before: From the stage and sweetheart table.
After: Now this is taken before the set up was completed from the sweetheart table and without the specialty lighting- so please keep that in mind – so many vendors coming and going, hence why draping is pulled back in areas!
And their candy bar we set up.
WOW- that is what sums up this wedding and reception!! Working with this couple and their families was a perfect experience as a wedding planner!!! They are all so loving and caring and we worked together to create an event for their friends and family that is unforgettable!
I know I am bias but they picked one of my absolute favorite venues when they chose Historic 701 Whaley Building. This space is breath-taking and you just have to let your imagination run wild. Ashli and Jioni wanted a modern chic feel in this historic venue. Bright colors paired with a more ‘fall feeling’ went hand in hand for this evening reception.
Catering was provided by the wonderful Capital City Catering- the couple wanted some of Capital City Catering’s signature items like the fresh squeezed lemonade station and their beautiful fruit tree. During a meeting, I made a fun suggestion of having a ‘late night snack’ – later in the evening, after guests had been dancing the night away, Capital City Catering set up a new food station of fresh made grill cheese sandwiches (which were beyond amazing) and individual servings of their home-made tomato soup!!! It was a MONSTER success!!!!
Ruth Rackley photographed this lovely event- it was just wonderful working with her again!!! She had the opportunity to take the couple upstairs to the gallery and take some of the most amazing shots- I can not wait to share a few!!!
The yummy wedding cake was by Vintage Bakery!
We had some really fun elements incorporated into their reception- B.I.O. created a custom ‘photo booth’ for the couples’ guest to have a blast with! Along with fun props- this was a hot item ALL night. We also created two separate lounge areas and covered the dance floor with lanterns that perfectly matched the flowers.
…and speaking of flowers – Southern Stems did THE MOST amazing job creating a romantic feeling with a great ‘wow’ factor. These flowers were so awesome- photos do not do them justice!!!!!!!!!
One other fabulous treat that we incorporated was a cigar bar- Jionni loves cigars so we set up a great bar outside with some wonderful varieties and of course a rich bottle of Brandy.
I want to send a BIG thank you to Ashley Brokop - she was working in 701 Whaley that day and was so very kind to come take a few set up shots for us- they are included below along with our very CANDID shots…..
Photo by Ashley Brokop
Photo by Ashley Brokop
One shot of one of the lounge areas
Fresh squeezed lemonade station
Food display
Photo by Ashley Brokop – one of the table center pieces.
Photo by Ashley Brokop- the other center pieces.
Candid shot of the ‘photo booth’
Props for the ‘photo booth’
Cake by Vintage Bakery
Photo by Ashley Brokop – candy bar
Of course- Children’s table….
Owner of Capital City Catering, LeeAnne, working hard on the ‘midnight snack station’ of grill cheese and tomato soup.
The cigar bar – B.I.O. had the brandy snifter already so we used it to float orchids and candles on this bar, it was a great touch
I just adore Marcia and Darrel- they are so sophisticated, elegant and have a classic style that I have just fallen in love with. Marcia wanted to use black and white damask for their color palette with fuchsia accents. We carried this pattern throughout the wedding in beautiful touches.
They wanted to have a relaxing cocktail hour then invite guests into a lovely elegant sit down dinner. The ceremony and reception was held at the Clarion Hotel. Ceremony was held in the Magnolia Room – we had crisp white chair covers on either side of a fabric draped, column lined aisle.
The cocktail hour was held in one salon where we designed a great lounge area using By Invitation Only…furniture. We created custom coffee table bases that matched the damask pattern.
Guest were then invited in to dinner – the ballroom was classic- lovely floor length black linens topped with By Invitation Only…custom made damask runners. The table was dressed with silver chargers, matching menu cards and beautiful fuchsia hydrangea pieces!
The head table was so romantic – we lined the front with mirrors, added pillar candles and dressed it with the bouquets!!!
The gorgeous cake was created by Parkland Cakes, photography by Patty Hallman. Flowers by Pampered Plants.
These images are candid!!! We snapped only a few so we could get some on the blog- Patty Hallman did send us a few ‘teasers’ that we have included!!!
Seating cards- sorry for the photo quality…
Programs
Patty Hallman shared this with us- so lovely!
![5IMG_0037a[1]](http://murphyweddings.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/5img_0037a1.jpg?w=500&h=750 "5IMG_0037a[1]")
Ceremony shot – thank you Patty Hallman
![12IMG_0003-sm[1]](http://murphyweddings.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/12img_0003-sm1.jpg?w=500&h=333 "12IMG_0003-sm[1]")
Again- thank you so much Patty for sharing this image.
Lovely shot of the couple just after the ceremony!!!! Patty Hallman
![1IMG_0144a[1]](http://murphyweddings.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/1img_0144a1.jpg?w=500&h=750 "1IMG_0144a[1]")
The lounge area- the photo does not do the ambiance justice~
Looking in to the lounge area from the dining room-
One angle of the dining room.
Another angle…
Table close up.
Another table close up.
Looking from the lounge to the dining room with the head table in the background.
Close up of head table.
Cake table
Candy bar before we got floral accents in it…
I can not tell you how much I just LOVE this couple!!! They put the ‘fun’ back in the fundamentals of a wedding….
Sometimes we all lose focus when planning an event- we let the little stuff take over and forget the reason we are there…LOVE and MARRIAGE!!! Missy and Shaun never let one thing come in the way of the love they have and wedding they planned. They came to us wanting design help for their beautiful wedding- we happily abliged…we were down right thrilled to be working with them. They were BEYOND fun and excited about getting married and enjoying time with friends and family.
The couple had specific ideas of how they wanted their beautiful reception to feel- so we turned 701 Whaley into a fun party atmosphere. We suggested they use the paper lanterns throughout the venue then over the dance floor, place the tiny lights to almost give it an ‘outdoor’ feel. We filled the windows with tons of ivory candles and the tables were dressed with elegant floral and candle center pieces by Think Floral!
Here is one of my favorite parts- Missy and Shaun expressed their want for a photo booth but they stated they were not happy with the pricing on them…so we had an alternate idea I said let’s make our own…the only stipulation was that they wanted it to feel like you stepped back to a 1980’s prom, yep, that is right – an 80’s prom theme photo booth. Soooooo- I went on the hunt for a great fabric, and I found the perfect black fabric COVERED in glitter. We then brought in 2 traditional white columns and ferns. It was so awesome. The couple supplied the baskets full of 80’s props- wigs, bracelets, leg warmers, banana clips and hats.
The couple made custom CDs for all their guest and you guessed it- it was ALL 80’s tunes!!!! My kind of wedding!
Catering was by the wonderful Applause Catering, Partytime DJ handled the fun tunes to keeps us in the ‘retro love’ all evening!
All Dressed Up Photography took set up shots for us earlier in the day- Thank you so much for the lovely images!!!!
This wedding was intimate, charming, sophisticated and elegant- Tiffany had the most beautiful ideas and it all came together in a gorgeous set up. The couple has exquisite taste and it came through in every aspect. Tiffany told me several times that she felt like Scarlet O’hara in her gorgeous Amsale wedding gown! Talk about Southern charm…
The ceremony was held at the Rutledge Chapel on the USC Horseshoe. Reception was across the way at the USC McCutchen House. After a moving ceremony the couple joined their intimate group of wedding guest for an amazing dinner created by Carolina Catering. After dinner- they all danced to the sounds of the wonderful Coastal Breeze Band!!!
The couple chose a perfect color palatte of navy, gold and white, which was just wonderful for a late summer wedding and the richness of the McCutchen House decor. Tiffany selected all white flowers for the wedding and reception- Southern Stems created the most gorgeous bouquets and centerpieces. The bride’s bouquet was wrapped with rich gold ribbon that the bride specifically picked to go with her details.
For reception centerpieces, the couple wanted the white floral decor to continue- each table had a specific type of flower in which the table itself was named for. Table name displays were vintage drawings of the flowers themselves- just beautiful. We accented each table with gold charges and a perfect Godiva chocolate cake favor for each guest.
Dinner was just amazing, stuffed chicken breast, sauteed vegetables, rice pilaf all started with a crisp salad. Dinner was wrapped up with the a perfect triple berry creme brulee – a specific request of the couple!!!!
The wedding cake was so amazingly tasty and beautiful- created by Slice of the South. The cake was topped with a vintage family heirloom topper.
I was so thrilled to be able to work with the wonderfully talented photographers, All Dressed Up Photography! Some of the images below were taken by Brantley and Richard (which you can see how amazing they are compared to my few snap shots
Picture taken of vestibule table – flowers by Southern Stems (All Dressed Up Photography)
Gorgeous bouquet by Southern Stems!!!! (All Dressed Up Photography)
Brantley caught me in the act As most of you know, I am SHORT and Tiffany was wearing drop dead gorgeous Kate Spade heels so I needed a little ‘lift’ – sorry for such the serious look but it was a serious moment…. (All Dressed Up Photography)
Just a beautiful shot of Tiffany and her sister just before the ceremony- (All Dressed Up Photography)
…speaks for itself (All Dressed Up Photography)
I just love the emotion caught here… (All Dressed Up Photography)
One of my favorite shots ( All Dressed Up Photography)
Front room angle.
All Dressed Up Photography shot of front room.
The table all set- love the glads….
…and the iris table.
Close up of the iris centerpiece- All Dressed Up Photography
The the beautiful carriage departure- All Dressed Up Photography
(This wedding/post by Jill Areheart)
Andrea and Jamel were a fabulous couple to work with. Andrea told me in our first meeting that she is a control freak. She had a vision for every detail of her day and wanted to make absolutely sure everything would be as she wanted. I was so happy that she trusted us…I know it wasn’t easy for her! But I wanted most of all for she and her mom to be able to let go and just enjoy the day. As you can see from the pictures of Andrea hula-hooping on the dance floor, she was able to relax and have a great time!
The wedding was in the Garden at Canal & Senate with the reception in the Hall. We draped the existing outside structure for the ceremony with fabric to soften it and make it really special. Southern Stems did the flowers. And Andrea and her mom made beautiful program fans.
For the reception, Andrea wanted bright chartreuse accents to offset the beautiful wine colored bridesmaid’s dresses and linens. The green lanterns we hung and the flowers by Southern Stems really brought out the accent color to pull the whole room together. Plants with uplighting from Bunch Gardens added just the right touch.
Dupre Catering did a fabulous job with the food, incorporating many of Andrea’s favorite recipes. The cake was from Publix in the Vista, and each tier had a different yummy filling. And since I included the picture on Andrea on the dance floor, I couldn’t resist one of the guys doing Michael Jackson! Atlantic Entertainment provided the DJ services and kept people dancing all night.
Here are a few candid photos:
